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Castor oil

Updated: Wikipedia source

Castor oil

Castor oil is a vegetable oil pressed from castor beans, the seeds of the plant Ricinus communis. The seeds are 40 to 60 percent oil. It is a colourless or pale yellow liquid with a distinct taste and odor. Its boiling point is 313 °C (595 °F) and its density is 0 g/cm3. It includes a mixture of triglycerides in which about 90 percent of fatty acids are ricinoleates. Oleic acid and linoleic acid are the other significant components. Some 270,000–360,000 tonnes (600×10^6–790×10^6 lb) of castor oil are produced annually for a variety of uses, including soaps, lubricants, hydraulic and brake fluids, paints, dyes, coatings, inks, cold-resistant plastics, waxes and polishes, nylon, and perfumes.

Tables

Average composition of castor seed oil / fatty acids · Composition
Ricinoleic acid
Ricinoleic acid
Acid name
Ricinoleic acid
Range
85–95
Type
ω−9
Oleic acid
Oleic acid
Acid name
Oleic acid
Range
2–6
Type
ω−9
Linoleic acid
Linoleic acid
Acid name
Linoleic acid
Range
1–5
Type
ω−6
α-Linolenic acid
α-Linolenic acid
Acid name
α-Linolenic acid
Range
0 –1
Type
ω−3
Stearic acid
Stearic acid
Acid name
Stearic acid
Range
0 –1
Type
saturated
Palmitic acid
Palmitic acid
Acid name
Palmitic acid
Range
0 –1
Type
saturated
Dihydroxystearic acid
Dihydroxystearic acid
Acid name
Dihydroxystearic acid
Range
0 –0
Type
saturated
Others
Others
Acid name
Others
Range
0 –0
Acid name
Range
Type
Ricinoleic acid
85–95
ω−9
Oleic acid
2–6
ω−9
Linoleic acid
1–5
ω−6
α-Linolenic acid
0 –1
ω−3
Stearic acid
0 –1
saturated
Palmitic acid
0 –1
saturated
Dihydroxystearic acid
0 –0
saturated
Others
0 –0

References

  1. Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry
    https://doi.org/10.1002%2F14356007.a10_173
  2. APC Forensic Medicine and Toxicology for MBBS
    https://books.google.com/books?id=Tl0qDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA532
  3. Sigma-Aldrich Co., product no. 259853. Retrieved on 19 January 2026.
    https://www.sigmaaldrich.com/catalog/product/sigma/259853
  4. European Journal of Lipid Science and Technology
    https://doi.org/10.1002%2Fejlt.200900138
  5. "The Castor Bean: A Plant Named After A Tick"
    https://web.archive.org/web/20211115044547/https://www2.palomar.edu/users/warmstrong/plmar99.htm
  6. The Healing Past
    https://brill.com/view/book/edcoll/9789004377325/BP000006.xml
  7. Bill Casselman's Canadian Word of the Day
    https://web.archive.org/web/20110203042939/http://www.billcasselman.com/cwod_archive/beaver_castor_two.htm
  8. The Papyrus Ebers, Translated from the German Version by Cyril P. Bryan
    https://web.archive.org/web/20130921055114/http://oilib.uchicago.edu/books/bryan_the_papyrus_ebers_1930.pdf
  9. A Manual of Midwifery for Midwives
    https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=hvd.hc4qpg&seq=102
  10. "Seed Oil Prices"
    https://web.archive.org/web/20080406064840/http://www.fas.usda.gov/oilseeds/circular/2007/July/oilseedsfull0707.pdf
  11. "Castor oil"
    https://www.drugs.com/monograph/castor-oil.html
  12. Food and Chemical Toxicology
    https://doi.org/10.1016%2FS0278-6915%2898%2900057-X
  13. www
    https://web.archive.org/web/20171206224827/http://www.sfm.state.or.us/cr2k_subdb/msds/cremophor_el_castor_oil.pdf
  14. Anais da Academia Brasileira de Ciências
    https://doi.org/10.1590%2FS0001-37652004000100005
  15. Medicinal Plants in Australia Volume 3: Plants, Potions and Poisons
    https://books.google.com/books?id=ieVUAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA309
  16. Non-prescription Medicines
    https://books.google.com/books?id=lW-0IoSYMBYC&dq=zinc+and+castor+oil+cream&pg=PA206
  17. "Trihydroxystearin"
    https://www.cosmeticsinfo.org/ingredient/trihydroxystearin/
  18. Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences
    https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/1964JPhmS..53..891H
  19. dailymed
    https://dailymed.nlm.nih.gov/dailymed/fda/fdaDrugXsl.cfm?setid=2984bce2-89bf-4768-a1ca-ccf03b1197be&type=display
  20. "Castor Oil"
    https://web.archive.org/web/20130209065404/http://www.cancer.org/treatment/treatmentsandsideeffects/complementaryandalternativemedicine/manualhealingandphysicaltouch/castor-oil
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